With the winds of March passing by and the rains of April upon us, attention of our members will be turning to seasonal playing activities that will include preparations for regional qualifiers and national tournaments. That it is not to say that over the recent cold months the PE governing body and working groups have been dormant, they have been busy preparing for the future. Here are some of the things that have been happening:
Multi-tiered Membership
The working party of regional Presidents has, together with members of the PE Board, been engaged in meetings and other communications, gathering the different opinions from regional clubs and members on the proposed introduction of a tired membership that would suit our current and new membership for the future. Various structures have been put forward and are being considered by the group, with a view to finalising a proposal for presentation.
National Junior Regional Structure
With the support of Petanque England, a small number of regional qualified coaches and YDOs are currently implementing a provisional junior programme. The structure currently involves those from the Southern and Home Counties regions, but with dedicated engagement from all regions it will gradually expand, making it much more accessible for all junior players.
To complement the programme, a Petanque England Junior Doubles Championship will be held at Oxshott PC on 1st July 2023. Details are available from chris@chubbfamily.net. There is also a new Facebook page for Juniors, you can find this by searching for “Petanque England Juniors” in Facebook..
Coaching Commission
The Commission held its latest meeting at the end of March, with an agenda that covered various coaching topics. These included regional activity reviews, future coaching assessments, Club Coach course future amendments, current and newly qualified coaching numbers, future coaching qualification courses, together with ongoing DBS and coaching licence renewals. The latter part of the meeting was dedicated to the establishment of the new multi-regional junior project and discussions by the Junior leads on how progress for the future will need to be created.
Notes on the important meeting topics will be circulated to all RCCs and those who were unable to attend. It is also intended to hold an additional Commission meeting at a suitable venue in the future.
Umpire Commission
The recent invitation promoted by the Umpires commission to participate in a `National Rules Awareness` course, offers the opportunity to all PE members to consider becoming an PE Qualified Umpire rather than just updating their knowledge either as a qualified coach or a player. As an organisation we do suffer in not having enough qualified umpires in our sport and, from the perception, that you have be of a certain later age to meet the requirements. Perhaps it is time for that to change.
Inter-Regional Championship
As previously stated, the PE Board has had another meeting with the Pontins venue management and service company Isle of Wight Tours to discuss the past highlighted areas of concern. Subsequently, all the issues have now been fully discussed and understood with actions being implemented to ensure that the 2023 experience will be much more enjoyable.Further communication on those actions on the areas of concern will be forthcoming via the PE Events group.
PE Board of Directors Meeting
The minutes of the most recent Petanque England Board meeting will be released following the normal approval taken at the next Board meeting, which is expected to be held in late April.
Good luck to all in the forthcoming events.
Colin Roper
President, Petanque England